Life Changer: Dress Yoga Pants from Betabrand

It's my last few weeks of employment at the job I love, and I'm spending them serving jury duty. In a textbook bad-timing scenario, I got the summons two days before I got the boot. And two hours into my very first day at the courthouse, I got put on a jury for a two-week trial. (And that's all I can say about it. So don't ask.)

Before jury duty started, I started planning jury-duty-appropriate outfits (like I do). Layers. Comfortable boots. A big handbag that can accommodate my lunch, my iPad, my phone, my umbrella, my makeup bag, a bottle of water, snacks and a chocolate bar. And, above all, clothes that feel good while sitting in a wooden courthouse chair all day. In a word: Yoga pants. (Okay--two words.)

But not the everyday yoga pants one would wear for actual yoga practicing or lounging around the house. (Note: The girl in front of me in the long security line this morning who was 45 minutes late for her DUI hearing was wearing them with a tucked-in button-down top and flats. "Can you tell I'm wearing yoga pants?" she asked. "No. They look just like regular pants," I replied. I lied.)

After seeing ad after ad about them on Facebook, I finally bit the bullet recently and ordered a couple pairs of Betabrand Dress Yoga Pants. (In case you're not familiar with it, Betabrand is a site for crowd-funded clothing where you can find things like a poo emoji dress and pieces by Project Runway alums SethAaron and Melissa Fleis.)

Cropped Dress Yoga Pant

I got the cropped design (Material Girl is 5'2" and they are barely cropped on me) and a straight leg pair (which I ordered in petite and still had to have hemmed). And, ladies, let me tell ya: When I put them on, a faint chorus of angels began singing. A calm came over me. I checked the back view. (Good!) I did a quick pigeon pose. I tried them on with all my favorite tops. They are a dream. A comfy comfy dream.

Straight Leg Dress Yoga Pant

Full disclosure: Not a fan of pants. After 6 years in a warehouse environment during which I could wear shorts to work, I always dreaded the coming of fall when I'd have to squeeze into skinny jeans or spandex-less Gap khakis. (I tried Pajama Jeans. It did not go well. Thumbs down.) But now: Yay pants! Bring on the pants-a-palooza! I'm all about all knits all the time. I'm all about pants that look office-appropriate but feel like pajamas. (And even don't get me started on blazers that feel like sweatshirts.) Since purchasing my initial black pairs, I got a couple additional colors and funded a new style (which I will also need to have hemmed).

At around $70 a pair, these magic pants are bit pricey, but Betabrand has 20% off promotions all the time (including right now), so you can score a pair for around $55, with free shipping and free, easy returns and exchanges. I suggest ordering the same size you'd order in regular yoga pants. (They are available in XS-XXL with petite and long options for most of the designs.)